Introduction:
The theme for today’s sermon is “sent to preach the good news”. The good news is about the grace of God, God’s undeserved favour, as a result of the death of Christ on the cross, His burial and His resurrection. The good news is that Christ has delivered us from the kingdom of darkness to give us eternal life and fill us with the light of His presence. God created man in His own image and likeness and clothed him with glory and honour. Sin cost Adam God’s glory, life, authority and dominion and in Adam “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). It took the grace of God to restore life and bring light into the world through Jesus Christ. John the Baptist proclaimed Him to be “the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world”. Jesus Christ was crucified, buried and rose from the dead for our justification to make us partakers of His divine nature. Our justification is necessary to enter the Kingdom of God and every believer is sent to preach the good news of God’s grace.
Step One: The Good News of God’s grace
a) God loved us while we were yet sinners
The good news is about the cross of Christ that made God’s grace possible. We did not deserve His love yet He loved us enough to die for us “while we were yet sinners”. (Rom. 5:8)
b) Christ has paid the penalty for sin
“The wages of sin is death” so Christ bore the full judgement of God on sin in our place and shed His blood “so that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life”. (John 3:16).
c) We are saved by grace
We are saved “By grace through faith, and that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God”. (Eph. 2:8) The good news is that we did not do anything to deserve eternal life but received it by grace through faith. The blood of Christ has not only paid the penalty for sin but has also imputed to us the righteousness of Christ.
Illustration:
We are saved by grace through faith. The grace of God has made provision to meet all our needs. Unfortunately, instead of taking hold of the provisions of God’s grace by faith as we did for our salvation, we often believe that the Christian life depends on our own works. We justify this by quoting words that are not found anywhere in the Scriptures such as “God helps those who help themselves”. Various surveys around the world show little difference in the behaviour of so called “Christians” and unbelievers. There is just as much stealing and dishonesty among both groups. The reason is that instead of taking hold of the provisions of God’s grace by faith we rather decide to earn them by every possible means. This is also the reason for the divisions and quarrels among believers. Instead of focusing on Christ whose death on the cross gave them eternal life and made provision to meet their needs, they focus on people who have no power to change their lives and put their trust in their abilities. Many leaders today have put themselves in the place of Christ and the result is deception, control, divisions and quarrels within the body of so called “Christians”.
Application:
The grace of God has the power to transform our lives and as believers we should keep our focus on Christ and the cross. It gives us the right motives for living. We give because God gave us all He had, His Son Jesus Christ, we forgive because God in Christ has forgiven us, and we love because Christ loved us and gave His life for us.
Step Two: The Good News is to all people
a) Its acceptance leads to salvation
The good news is to all people and all nations and its acceptance leads to salvation. It is too precious to be kept to ourselves. Its acceptance births spiritual life, leads to spiritual discernment and belief in the truth of God’s Word.
b) Its acceptance leads to the gift of the Holy Spirit
The acceptance of the good news leads to the gift of the Holy Spirit who comes to indwell, empower, teach and guide the believer.
c) Its acceptance leads to belief in God’s word
The acceptance of the good news leads to belief in God’s word and the certainty of His promises. The spiritual certainties of God are the realities that affect our lives since what happens in the physical realm is only a manifestation of what has happened in the spiritual realm.
Illustration:
The good news is to be preached to all people. There was a time when missionaries will leave the comfort of their families, homes and lands and go to places where there is darkness and evil to preach the good news to deliver those in darkness and translate them into the kingdom of light. Darkness and evil go with poverty and lack and many people today resist going to the places where there is much evil and darkness because they are concerned about their personal comfort. Jesus went to the most evil and dark places of His day in Israel. He went and ministered in Galilee as prophesied by Isaiah because there was much evil and darkness there. The declaration of the good news bringing light in the midst of darkness and evil had priority over everything else in His life. It had priority over His relationship with His loved ones, over His needs and even over His life.
Application:
The good news is to all people. Do we have a preference for those with whom we want to share the good news? Would we go to everyone or will our decisions be influenced by their different backgrounds, situations or conditions?
Step Three: Acceptance of the good news leads to changed lives
a) It restores our godly nature
The acceptance of the good news leads to changed lives by restoring our godly nature that sin had corrupted. On the cross Christ gave His life to save us from destruction and restore God’s glory in our lives.
b) It gives us a new status
The acceptance of the good news gives us a new status as God’s beloved children. Jesus was forsaken and rejected while He hang on the cross that we might be accepted as God’s beloved children who can come to Him and call Him Father.
c) It gives us a new direction in life
The acceptance of the good news enables believers to renew their minds so that they can follow Christ’s direction in their new life. The renewed mind aligns the believers thinking with that of God’s word and empowers him to act on it.
Illustration:
Jesus Christ confirmed the truth of God’s word. When John the Baptist in his prison cell, focused on his circumstances instead of the word of God, he began to doubt whether Jesus was really the Messiah and wanted confirmation. Jesus dealt with his doubt by referring him to what was happening. “The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised,” and “the good news is preached to the poor”. Jesus referred John the Baptist to what the word of God said about Him. He of all people knew the prophecy of Isaiah and that what Jesus was doing fulfilled that prophecy in its entirety.
Application:
The good news is the best news we can ever share. It changes lives not only in time but also in eternity and gives us access to the grace of God. It is not enough to just hear the good news; we must also respond to it.
Conclusion:
Every believer has been sent to preach the good news so that whosoever believes might have eternal life. We cannot preach the good news about the grace of God and not emphasis the basis of that grace, that is the cross of Jesus Christ. What happened in the Corinthian Church is also happening in our midst today. The members of the Church hear the good news but often put the preachers in the place of Christ. On the other hand, it is the preachers who put themselves in the place of Christ and act in such a way that the cross of Christ no longer has a place in the life of the congregation. The result is the prevailing evil among many congregations today who have faith in their leaders instead of in Christ. It is only our faith in Christ that can take hold of the provisions of His grace.
Personal response:
The good news is too good to be true and everyone needs to hear it. Our salvation depends on it, not on anything we have done but on what Christ has done. Let us prioritise the sharing of this news that many will be justified and made partakers of His divine nature to the praise and glory of Almighty God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
